Mike Gertner, M.D.
Adjunct Partner, Palo Alto- B.S.
- Columbia University
- M.S.
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- M.D.
- Cornell University
Dr. Gertner has over 15 years of experience in surgery and medical device innovations. Most recently, with Essex Woodlands, Dr. Gertner founded Kona Medical, an early stage medical device company developing a completely external device technology for the treatment of hypertension; he is currently serving as Kona Medical’s President and CEO. In 2007, he founded Oraya Therapeutics, inventing and developing the technology to initiate the first placebo controlled radiosurgery trial for macular degeneration. Dr Gertner served as CEO of Oraya through 2009, and raised $64M in venture-backed financing.
Prior to Oraya, Dr. Gertner founded Allux Medical, which developed minimally invasive devices for the treatment of upper airway and dermatological inflammatory diseases. Dr. Gertner has also been active in the field of bariatric surgery, selling an early technology platform to Allergan Medical in 2007. At Stanford University Dr. Gertner developed with Dr. Thomas Krummel the Surgical Innovation Program, a first of its kind program to train surgeons in the art and science of invention and innovation. Dr. Gertner completed a general surgery at UCSF, is board certified, and a Fellowof the American College of Surgeons. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of Surgery at Stanford and is an attending trauma and emergency surgeon at several Bay Area hospitals.
Dr. Gertner is the sole or first inventor of over 100 patents and has authored numerous publications and book chapters related to surgical technology, surgical innovation, nanotechnology, and most recently, stereotactic radiosurgery to treat macular degeneration.
Dr. Gertner joined Essex Woodlands in August 2006 as Adjunct Partner.
